Erika Heald Marketing Consulting

Content marketing that drives business results

May 4, 2020 Content Chat Recap: How Will You Refine Your Content Marketing Strategy For The Rest Of 2020?

by Leave a Comment

As communicators, it’s vital for us to stay agile and pivot when necessary to best serve our audiences, and the COVID-19 pandemic has forced many of us to drastically overhaul our 2020 marketing plans. So, where do we go from here with so much uncertainty ahead?

This week on #ContentChat, the community discussed how we are shifting our marketing plans in response to the crisis. Read below for the full conversation, including the KPIs we’re using to define success, what we’re doing about our in-person event strategy, and how we are continuing to provide value for our audiences.

Q1: How has COVID-19 and the resulting shelter-in-place mandates changed your business/industry? And how has it affected your content marketing to date?

The full effects of COVID-19 continue to unfold, but in these first months, we’ve seen an understandable shift toward digital platforms and content types. Social media, in particular, has become a focus for companies of all sizes, especially given that the news media landscape has faced significant turbulence during the pandemic.

Industries and individual businesses are facing varying degrees of disruption because of the pandemic, and we have seen an increased interest in freelance communications support.

Most, if not all, content is now approached through the remote work lens. It is best to provide content that helps your audience navigate this situation, preferably in a positive and uplifting way.

Sensitivities are heightened and there are new considerations for content creators. Consider using visuals that complement the principles of social distancing.

At a minimum, review your content KPIs to see what is responding best with your audience during this time. If possible, consider surveying your audience so you can even further understand their needs.

Q2: What external KPIs are you looking for before moving ahead with a new content strategy for the remainder of the year?

Tracking KPIs can help you adjust your content strategy, and use UTMs to more accurately attribute leads. In Martin’s case, his audience has been responding well to ebooks and his team plans to invest more heavily in those.

We recommend taking a short term look at your KPIs and to not assume that your content performance during these first months of the pandemic is indicative of a longer-term trend.

Customer retention is an especially important KPI to track—including why customers are leaving—so you can focus on activities that are proven to keep your customers happy.

All in-person activity plans should be put into question. For conferences in Q4, many marketers are waiting to see whether events start to cancel, although there are already rumblings that in-person events likely won’t return until mid-2021. During this time, you could survey your audience to gauge whether they would even be interested in an in-person event this year.

One thing is certain: there is a lot of potential in the digital event space, and your audience may come to desire these event experiences even after social distancing is no longer needed. We can expect digital events to try and replicate in-person experiences where possible—primarily the networking opportunities—and new tech solutions and services will likely be introduced to fill this need.

Q3: What internal KPIs will you be using to measure success for the remainder of the year?

Many of our community members are tracking community engagement to measure the success of their activities.

Other folks are looking to streamline their processes to increase efficiencies.

Whichever KPI(s) you track, temper your expectations based on this new normal.

Q4: Looking at your 2020 content strategy, what did you plan that is still on track?

There are still a lot of activities that are on track for our community. Take a page from Ed’s playbook to reset with your clients, and remember there are still plenty of opportunities to engage with and genuinely help your audience.

About Alek Irvin

Alek Irvin is a content marketing professional with a rich history in social media management, executive thought leadership development, and media relations. As a consultant at Erika Heald Marketing Consulting, he creates human-focused content and thought leadership platforms that help brand leaders connect and engage with their communities. Alek has worked with a range of startups and Fortune 500 companies across the B2B technology and consumer spaces, including IBM, Dell Technologies, Hitch Works, Emtrain, Integrate, and Frameable. Connect with him on Twitter @AlekIrvin.

Explore the Blog

#ContentChat ABM B2B blogging branding buyer personas career development CMworld conferences content audit content creation content distribution content marketing content marketing planning content marketing process content planning content strategy customer experience editorial calendars editorial management editorial style guide employee brand advocacy events influencer collaborations LinkedIn marketing conferences new hire onboarding personal branding podcasting professional development professional development for content marketers research SEO SMB social media social media engagement social media planning solopreneurs Spin Sucks startups thought leadership twitter UGC virtual events writing process

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

All content © copyright 2000-2023 Erika Heald. All rights reserved.
Read our Privacy Policy.